Birthday Wishes Always Come True - Wish Upon a Star
written by: albe-chan
DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fiction and I do NOT own Harry Potter or any of the characters mentioned, I am making no money from this, and any similarities with real life are purely coincidental. This work will contain MATURE THEMES, such as coarse language, mature subject matter (scenes containing graphic sex, recreational drug use, nudity, etc.), and/or violence. Please, if you are not over the age of 18, or of majority in your country, DO NOT READ THIS! You have been warned!
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The last few days of break seemed to fly by for Lily, and it was with a heavy heart that she repacked her trunk and got ready to go back to Hogwarts for the last term of Sixth Year. She reminded herself to be excited, because she'd have Pep Team to focus on, and she had done quite well on her homework, and would undoubtedly boost up her lagging Charms mark by the end of the first week back. But her heart was heavy, because she doubted, very thoroughly, Scorpius would actually come and visit her, even if only to continue tutoring her.
She had just put the last of her clean laundry away and closed the lid of her trunk when there was a knock on her bedroom door. "Lily, honey, are you ready?" her mother asked poking her head in. The younger redheaded witch nodded.
"I think so. Let me just make sure I haven't missed anything, and I'll be down in a second."
Ginny Potter paused, then moved into Lily's room properly. "What's wrong?" she asked with the infinite wisdom of a mother.
"Nothing," Lily sighed, getting up and glancing around for anything she might've forgotten.
"Lily," her mother chided. "You're normally excited to go back to school, and you look as though you're about to cry. What's wrong, honey?"
The redhead shook her head and opened her mouth to tell her mum again it was nothing and that she was fine, but the words wouldn't come. And then, to her horror she started crying. "I'm fine," she mumbled as her mother came over and hugged her tight. "I just… It's going to suck, the rest of term."
"Why?" Ginny murmured.
"Because I have to go back and Scorpius isn't going to be there," she admitted. "Which is stupid, but he's been helping me with my Charms, and, well…" she sniffled a bit. "It's just going to suck."
"It's only a few months, honey," her mother said consolingly and Lily sniffled again, then pulled back. "And you'll see all your friends again."
Lily nodded, wiping her face. "I know," she mumbled.
Ginny brushed the hair back from her daughter's face. "I'll leave you to your packing, honey." She turned to leave, and then added over her shoulder, "And it won't be as bad as it seems. If I know Scorpius, which I like to think I do, considering he's as good as my own son, you'll see him again before you know it."
Lily nodded, mumbled, "Thanks, Mum," and didn't see Ginny's pleased smile as she closed the bedroom door.
An hour later, Lily was boarding the Hogwarts Express, and although she still felt a little glum, she smiled and waved to her parents as the train pulled away from Platform 9¾. She found her friend Cheryl and her cousin Hugo in a compartment with the Pellard twins, and pasted on a smile as she Levitated her trunk up into the luggage rack. "Hey," she murmured, plunking herself down on the free seat between the twins.
"Hi, Lily," the identical blonde witches said in tandem. "Good break?" Hope asked. Lily pulled a face.
"Yes and no," she admitted.
"How's Malfoy?" Hugo asked, smirking, and Lily shot her cousin a filthy look, because she did not want to think about Scorpius any more than she already was.
"Hugo," Cheryl said softly, giving him a chastising look. "Really? Don't be a prick." The dark haired witch cast Lily an apologetic look.
"It's fine," the redhead lied. "He's fine."
"I'll bet," Hope sighed with a smirk, and Faith rolled blue eyes. Lily smiled a little.
"How did your mum like Cheryl?" Lily asked her cousin pointedly. Hugo shrugged and Cheryl beamed.
"She liked her plenty," Hugo replied, and reached for Cheryl's hand. "Which I knew she would. What's not to like, right?" Cheryl smiled goofily, and turned Hugo's face to kiss him, and Lily glanced over to see Hope miming vomiting.
"I'm gonna go find Alfonso," Faith said, getting up and opening the compartment door.
"So you saw Malfoy over break?" Hope said to Lily after her twin had disappeared. Lily nodded, silently wishing her friends would stop talking about the blond pureblood who made her heart ache. "Was that weird?"
"Kind of," Lily said. She didn't want to say it had been downright awful when Scorpius had come to get her from Carmichael's, so she focused on the good parts of seeing him on break as Cheryl and her cousin, wrapped up in their sappy happiness kissed and whispered together across the compartment.
"Because you two split last year?" Hope asked softly, offering Lily some Bertie Botts' Every Flavour Beans.
"Thanks. And I mean, well, there was that," Lily conceded. "Not that we really talked about it. But mostly it was alright." She grinned. "I mean it was actually kind of nice, to see him," she gushed. "And it was really awesome, because he was having a laugh with my brothers, about how I can't fly, and I totally shut them all up by proving I could." Hope's blue eyes widened. "It was great. They just stared."
"Since when do you fly a broom?" Hope asked, giggling.
"Since Ev-MacDougall taught me when we were dating." She grinned, making a mental note to thank the tall, broad-shouldered Hufflepuff when she saw him, because it had definitely been worth all the fear and anxiety to learn after seeing Scorpius and her brothers' faces.
"And you didn't hook up with him or anything?"
Lily frowned, wondering if Hope was asking because of her reputation before break for hooking up with anyone and everyone. "No," she said, and popped a Bean in her mouth, then spit it right back out. "Ugh! That one was definitely soap flavoured!"
A few hours later, after Faith had returned and the lunch trolley had come by, Lily was feeling restless, so she got up to wander around the train for a bit. Just then, Matilda came in, looking disgruntled. "Potter," she said, looking grim.
"Matthews," Lily replied brightly. "Taking a Prefecting break?"
Matilda shot Hugo a dark look. "A brief one. We're a little short handed." Hugo rolled dark brown eyes. "Anyway, I have a message for you," the Prefect Sixth Year said to Lily, who waited impatiently.
"What is it?" Lily finally asked.
Matilda looked a little sour, which was a face Lily hadn't seen in awhile, then pulled a piece of parchment from her pocket on her school robes. "You've got a waiting list." She put the parchment into Lily's hand, even as the redhead looked confused, and then Matilda turned to leave the compartment again, adding over her shoulder, "And the Head Boy and Girl told me to tell you that even if you're sick, you have to do patrols with the rest of us, Weasley."
"What a pleasant visit," Cheryl drawled in the silence after Matilda departed.
"You'd think she wouldn't be wound so tight after hooking up with McEwan," Faith said, filing her nails.
Hope snorted. "Like they do more than hold hands," she scoffed.
Lily unfolded the parchment, and saw a list of half a dozen names, all boys, and felt her face going red. Apparently there were plenty of dudes at Hogwarts who'd decided, over break, that if she was putting out even just a snog and a fondle, they were interested. She crumpled the parchment and exited the compartment, feeling embarrassed and uneasy. Because while everyone assumed she'd come back the same person, Lily didn't feel like the same rebellious, rule-flouting witch she'd been the last time she'd been on the train.
There were plenty of whispers as she wandered down the train, and more than a few dirty looks from other witches as she passed, and Lily felt foolish. She'd tried so hard to make Aaron Worthington realize she'd have anything to do with anyone but him, she'd sold herself short in the process. And now the bulk of the school probably thought she was stupid and easy, because that's the girl she'd portrayed herself as.
But something had changed for Lily. Something, some part inside her, had realized she had more potential, more skill, and way more to offer than just a snog and a fondle and a good time in a secluded spot. And Lily wanted to be more than that. She was pretty sure it was because Scorpius had pointed out that she only had a limited amount of time to figure out what the hell she wanted in life, and while she still wasn't decided on a career, or anything like that, Lily knew at least part of what she wanted. She wanted Scorpius, wholly and completely, and she wanted to have the kind of lasting love for and with him her parents had.
She was just reaching the end of the train when she passed a compartment with the door flung wide, filled with guys from her year, all of them, she was fairly sure, from Hufflepuff House. "Oi, Potter!" one called, and she deigned to look round. "Looking for some fun, sweetheart? I'll have a go, if you have room in your schedule."
Lily's lip curled, even as the other guys laughed, Robert Robertson among them. "Yeah right," she scoffed. "I'd rather put my tongue down a loo than in your mouth," she shot back, and flicked her hair off her shoulder.
"Aw, that's not nice, Potter," the guy teased, chortling. "I could even put that filthy mouth to work on something else if you like."
"Sod off," she mumbled, and made to turn around.
The guy, who she was fairly certain was named Kevin Corner, came to the door of the compartment. "C'mon, Potter. Everyone knows you're easier than getting a Niffler to find a Galleon at Gringotts."
"What part of sod off did you not understand, Corner?" said a familiar voice from behind Lily, and she felt her cheeks darkening with her blush.
Corner merely looked up over Lily's shoulder. "Sorry, MacDougall, I didn't think you had dibs. My bad."
Lily bit her lip. "I don't," MacDougall said. "But you're being an arse and embarrassing yourself. Save it for your girlfriend, Corner. You know, that pretty little Ravenclaw you brought to our dorm just before break and professed your undying love for?" Kevin Corner's face flushed a blotchy red, and Lily took advantage of the stand off to slink away. To her surprise, MacDougall followed her. "Sorry about that, Potter," he said after Lily paused and turned to face him. His dark curls had grown out of their crew cut a little, and fell over his forehead adorably, his dark eyes still as soft and gentle as she recalled.
Lily swallowed. "No worries," she said lightly. "It's to be expected I guess."
MacDougall frowned a little at that. "Though, I'd have done the same for anyone," he qualified.
The redhead smiled. "I know," she said, because Evan seemed precisely the sort of guy who'd stand up for any young witch who'd been talked to as such. "Actually, I was hoping I'd see you," she admitted, and Evan's brows lifted. "Um, I know we're kind of...weird," she said, looking down, "but I just wanted to say thanks, for teaching me to fly a broom. I got to show up my brothers on break, and it was awesome."
He smiled, eyes crinkling at the corners when she peeked back u, and Lily smiled with him. "You're welcome, Potter."
"And I know you probably don't care, or want to hear it," she added, "but I really am sorry how things ended with us."
MacDougall shrugged his massive shoulders. "The world works in mysterious ways. I'm just glad you got something out of it."
Lily laughed softly. "Yeah," she murmured, and a slightly awkward silence fell between them. "Well I'm going back to my compartment. Um, see you around, I guess," she mumbled, blushing a tiny bit and pushing a hand through her mane of hair.
"See you around, Potter," he said softly, and then to her surprise, he hugged her. "And just for the record, I'm not mad."
"Good," she said, hugging his tempting warmth back. "And thanks again, MacDougall."
His mouth quirked up as she pulled away. "You can still call me Evan if you want."
Lily smiled. "Only if you call me Lily," she shot back, and gave a friendly wave before going back to her own compartment. And somehow it didn't bother her as much, the whispers and gossip she encountered along the way.
At last they arrived at the station in Hogsmeade, but Lily didn't spot Carmichael, and for a second wondered if maybe Scorpius had called the Muggle police on him. Then she shook her head, dismissed that foolish thought, and figured he was simply lost in the crowd toward the carriages that would take them up to school. Lily shared with the Pellard twins and, to her surprise, Alfonso Bonifacio. And Lily had to admit, he was just as good looking as his brother had been, but significantly less cocky, and he seemed to genuinely like Faith, which made her happy for her friend, and yet still the tiniest bit jealous.
By the time Lily got up to her dorm room after dinner, slipping ahead of the twins and taking several choice shortcuts upstairs after Professor McGonagall dismissed the school, only Matilda was present, and Lily moved to start unpacking, trying not to brace for an assault. "I have to tell you something, P-Lily," Matilda said firmly, and the redhead was a little shocked, but recovered quickly.
"Sure. I'm assuming you mean in strictest confidence?" she asked with a lifted brow and Matilda smiled a tiny bit.
"Of course, and which I expect you to uphold, because I'd kick your ass in a duel, Potter," the other witch said with supreme confidence. Lily was torn between scowling at the challenge and laughing at Matilda's language. The brown haired Prefect stopped smiling. "But seriously… I don't ever want to hand you a list of names that you're probably going to play at being a slut with again. I'm not your madam. And, well...you can do better, Potter, than a list of guys who are all hoping they'll be the one to get you to go all the way."
Lily stared at her for a long second, because if that was a real kind of thing, which she wouldn't find surprising, it was pretty bloody awful. "You're right," she finally said at last, her voice tight, and the redhead quickly turned back to her unpacking.
Matilda didn't say anything more, but exited the dormitory quietly, leaving Lily her organizing and thoughts. The former she accomplished with well practiced ease, but the latter were troublesome. Thoughts of Scorpius and those wonderful days on break where he'd taught her to Apparate and tutored her in Charms and nonverbal spellwork, and wondering what had changed between when he'd looked at her with borderline revulsion at Carmichael's and the last time she'd seen him on break, smiling and looking at her with pride after she made strides in her Charmwork. And that meandered into thoughts of Carmichael, and wondering if he was up in his own dorm in Ravenclaw Tower, stuck with Zipzer and the rest of them, which then lead to thinking about MacDougall in his dormitory, and she just felt tired.
At last the Pellard twins joined her, bringing their little sister with them, and Lily lifted a brow, because the twins looked furious. "Don't think we won't curse you, just because you're our baby sister," Hope said threateningly.
"I will curse you because you're my baby sister. You're supposed to be on our side. And if you're not with us, you're against us, and Mum and Dad will find out what really happened to your birthday money, brat!"
"That's not fair!" Charity whined instantly.
"Sister issues?" Lily teased, having been in the same position Charity was now in, with two older siblings swearing her to secrecy when she wanted to rat them out. Only instead of possible contact with the opposite gender, which Lily was assuming the tiff was about, her brothers mostly just tried to cause trouble.
"She thinks she can go blabbing to our parents about my relationship!" Faith snarled.
"I can," Charity said, even as both her older sisters pulled their wands out in an identical motion. "And I'm not afraid of either of you!" Although Lily noticed the younger girl looked distinctly nervous. She grabbed a sweater to go for a walk, her unpacking finished, and so she'd have deniability should the twins actually curse poor Charity.
"Or you could just blackmail them," she tossed out, and smirked, then waved, even as Faith called her little sister several unfavourable names. She breezed through the common room, but wasn't fast enough to avoid Aaron Worthington, who caught her up by the portrait hole, slinging an arm around her shoulders.
"Had a good break, Lily?" he asked, grinning. Hazel eyes rolled.
"It was spectacular until now. Stop touching me, please. Thanks."
"So what plan have you come up with next, Potter?" Worthington asked, removing his arm and narrowing his light blue eyes. "Going to snog another hundred desperate dudes in an attempt to convince yourself you're not even a tiny bit attracted to me?" He grinned as Lily shot him a filthy look. "Or have you realized I can wait until you've come to your senses?"
"I'm waiting for never, Worthington, because I don't give a flying fuck about you. And even if I snogged a hundred dudes, you wouldn't be any closer to being one of them. Seriously, you're wasting your time."
"Ah, so you're just going to pretend then. Well, give Carmichael my best."
Lily snorted, sure Worthington had meant to sound cutting with that remark, but she merely shook her head, because he sounded delusional. "Whatever," she snapped, exiting the portrait hole and heading down to wander around the grounds for awhile.
She purposefully avoided Carmichael's usual haunts, and didn't bump into him, because Lily wasn't sure how she really felt about Carmichael. He'd become a habit, a probably bad one at that, but she wondered if, just maybe, he had feelings for her. Not that she had them for him, or anything, of course. Not even a little bit. But she'd thought more, since arriving at school, about Rose's declaration she should try to avoid a messy entanglement with Carmichael when he was going to graduate in a few months and she'd come back, alone again, for Seventh Year. Because she reckoned her cousin might have a tiny point there.
She breathed out a sigh of relief when she got back inside, just on time for making the common room before curfew, and headed up the stairs. She bumped into Carmichael, almost literally, just as she reached the Fifth Floor corridor. "So your parents risked letting you come back to school?" he teased, smiling, and Lily licked her lips just looking at the piercing on his mouth.
"They did," she agreed, and smiled ruefully. "But I'm literally grounded until I turn seventeen."
Carmichael shrugged. "Good thing you're at school then, isn't it?" he murmured, descending to stand on the same step, one from the top, of the stairs as her, a hand moving around her waist. "What the parentals don't know surely can't hurt them. And they're awfully far away."
Lily laughed. "Yeah, but my dad is Harry Potter. He might be the saviour of wizarding kind or whatever, but he's also kind of paranoid. He gets weekly letters from Professor Longbottom."
Carmichael chuckled. "And yet you still fly below the radar, Potter."
Lily shrugged. "I'm going to keep trying to do that," she said, whatever it meant, but she was going to start keeping a lower profile.
"Wanna come for a smoke?"
She shook her head. "I'm going up to bed." She remembered she had curfew and cursed, because it was now only minutes to. "Fuck, I gotta go, I cannot get detention for being late for curfew."
She made to hustle up the stairs and Carmichael rolled dark eyes. "You're a dork, Potter," he called, looking after her as she started up the next flight.
"Get over it, Carmichael, we crossed that bridge ages ago," she teased. "Goodnight, tosser."
"'Night," he said, and Lily was too focused on getting back to the common room in less minutes than she thought physically possible to notice that Carmichael, instead of descending the stairs to go smoke a joint, watched her go up, brows pulled together ever so slightly, almost frowning.
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